Grand Egyptian Museum Opens, Cattelan’s Toilet Goes Under the Hammer, and More Art World News

News New U.S. Report Seeks to Bolster ‘Understanding That Art Museums Are Workplaces’ Rachel Kubrick

U.S. museums see shifts as the Philadelphia Art Museum parts with director and employees at the Detroit Institute of Art unionise. In London, the V&A East reveals opening date, Annely Juda opens a new venue, and Project Native Informant winds down. Here’s Ocula’s briefing on the last seven days in the art world.

Art Fairs and Market

Maurizio Cattelan’s Golden Toilet Makes Auction Debut

Maurizio Cattelan’s America (2016) will come to auction for the first time at Sotheby’s New York sale on 18 November. The starting bid will be determined by the value of the work’s 100-plus kilograms of gold on the day of sale, likely around USD 10 million.

Biennials and Institutions

Vasyl Cherepanyn to Curate Berlin Biennale

Ukrainian curator and researcher Vasyl Cherepanyn has been appointed as the curator of the 14th Berlin Biennale. Cherepanyn will look ‘within and in response to the sociopolitical and cultural landscape of the city of Berlin’ for the next edition in 2027. He currently leads the Visual Culture Research Center in Kyiv, which also organises the Kyiv Biennial.

Detroit Institute of Art Moves to Unionise

DIA staff earlier this week revealed their intent to form a union and join AFSCME Cultural Workers United. The announcement comes on the heels of LACMA’s unionisation announcement last week, also with AFSCME.

V&A East Museum Reveals Opening Date

The V&A East Museum has announced that it will open its doors on 18 April 2026. Located in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in East London, close to the recently opened V&A East Storehouse, the five-storey institution was designed by architects O’Donnell + Tuomey and will launch with The Music is Black: A British Story, an exhibition about Black British music.

The Grand Egyptian Museum Fully Opens After Two Decades

The long-awaited archaeological museum in Giza opened to the public on 4 November. First announced in 1992, the Grand Egyptian Museum began construction in 2005. Key attractions include the debut of the highly anticipated Tutankhamun Gallery featuring the complete collection from the boy-king’s tomb.

Philadelphia Art Museum Director Ousted

Sasha Suda has been dismissed as CEO of the Philadelphia Art Museum after three years by its board of trustees. The decision comes after an controversial rebrand (the museum was formerly known as the Philadelphia Museum of Art), although it is unclear if this was the reason for termination.

Galleries

Annely Juda Inaugurates New Space with David Hockney Show

After more than 35 years on Dering Street, London gallery Annely Juda Fine Art re-opens at 16 Hanover Square today with Some Very, Very, Very New Paintings Not Yet Shown in Paris by David Hockney. The gallery will span two floors of exhibition space and a former ballroom in this historic Mayfair townhouse.

Project Native Informant Announces Closure

East London gallery Project Native Informant has announced it will wind down after 12 years. Its programme has included shows by Juliana Huxtable, Sin Wai Kin and Joseph Yaeger. Founder Stephan Tanbin Sastrawidjaja cited ‘an extremely volatile and unsustainable environment’, in addition to ‘personal factors’.

Awards and Residencies

Preis der Nationalgalerie Awarded to Maurizio Cattelan

The Italian artist has been announced as the 2026 recipient of the Preis der Nationalgalerie. The award includes a dedicated exhibition at the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin next September, which will be Cattelan’s first solo show in Germany.

Obituaries

Fluxus Artist Alison Knowles Dies at 92

Alison Knowles, American artist and one of the founders of the Fluxus movement, died last week in New York, aged 92. Much of her work involved performance, sound and audience participation around quotidian acts, such as Make a Salad, which she first performed at the ICA in London in 1962. —[O]

Main image: David Hockney, Vincent's Chair and Gauguin's Chair, 4 July 2025 (2025) (detail). Acrylic on canvas. 91.4 x 121.9 cm. © David Hockney. Courtesy the artist and Annely Juda Fine Art.